What to Expect?

  • Learning a language is hard. It is frustrating. Perseverance is key.
  • These sessions will introduce you to Python, showing you what is possible and how to achieve some of what might be beneficial in your work.
  • But the real learning comes by doing. You need to run the code yourself, have a play around, and really cement what you’ve learned by applying it.

Why Learn Python?

  • Coding skills generally and Python specifically seem to be a priority in the NHS right now. It’s a clear direction of travel. Learning now sets you up for the future.
  • Python and the applied skills taught in these sessions will enable you to use advanced methods and design flexible, scalable solutions.
  • Python is very valuable for career development.
  • It is (hopefully) fun!

Tools of the Trade

Everything you will need to get started

The Toolkit

  • We will be using the following tools throughout this course:
    • Language: Python
    • Dependency management: uv
    • Version Control: Git, GitHub Desktop
    • IDE: VS Code/Jupyter Notebooks (or your preferred IDE)
  • You can install all these tools by running the following in PowerShell:
    • winget install astral-sh.uv Microsoft.VisualStudioCode github-desktop

Python

  • Python is a an all-purpose programming language that is the most popular language in the world, widely used in almost every industry.
  • Python’s popularity is owed to its flexibility – it is the second best tool for every job.
  • It is a strong choice for data science and analytics, being one of or the best language for data wrangling, data visualisation, statistics, and machine learning.
    • It is also well-suited to front-end development, automation, and orchestration.

Dependency Management

  • Dependency management refers to the process of tracking and managing all of the packages (dependencies) that a project needs to run. It ensures:
    • The right packages are installed.
    • The correct versions are used.
    • Conflicts between packages are avoided.
  • We are using uv for dependency management.

Virtual Environments

  • Virtual environments are isolated Python environments that allow you to manage dependencies for a specific project without the state of those dependencies affecting other projects or your wider system. They help by:
    • Keeping dependencies separate for each project.
    • Avoiding version conflicts between projects.
    • Making dependency management more predictable and reproducible.
  • Virtual environments are a part of dependency management, and we will use uv to manage both the dependencies and virtual environments.

Version Control

  • Version control is the practice of tracking and managing changes to code or files over time, allowing you to:
    • Revert to earlier versions if needed.
    • Collaborate with others on the same project easily.
    • Maintain a history of changes.
  • We are using Git (the version control system) and GitHub (the platform for hosting our work).

IDE

  • An IDE (Integrated Development Environment) is a fully-featured tool that provides everything you need to write code as conveniently as possible.
  • It typically includes a code editor, debugger, build tools, and features like syntax highlighting and code completion.
  • Some common IDEs used for Python include VS Code, PyCharm, and Positron.
  • We will use VS Code or Jupyter Notebooks (which is not exactly an IDE, but similar).

Setting up a Python Project

A Walkthrough of the Python Project Workflow

Thank You!

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